The present invention relates to a new and improved belt link for use with a cartridge belt which is of the self-disintegrating type, and also relates to a new and improved cartridge belt composed of a plurality of adjacently interlinked or interfitted belt links.
In its more specific aspects, the invention concerns a new and improved belt link for use with a cartridge belt in which each belt link is constituted by a clamp member and a link member. Each cartridge in the cartridge belt is engaged by the link member of one belt link and the clamp member of an adjacent belt link. The link member has an outer cylindrical surface and the clamp member has an inner cylindrical surface. During buckling or kinking of the cartridge belt about the lengthwise axis of the cartridge the outer cylindrical surface of the link member is pivotably guided at the inner cylindrical surface of the clamp member.
In a belt link as known, for example from German Pat. No. 2,126,294, published Dec. 7, 1972, the clamp member as well as the link member possess a wide overlap or fitting interengagement with the cartridge, i.e., the belt links embrace the cartridge through an angle substantially greater than 180.degree., so as to ensure that the cartridge belt will not unintentionally disintegrate upon buckling. On the other hand, such a wide overlap obstructs the ammunition infeed to a firing weapon.